Vancouver: After the Riot

Last Wednesday, June 15, thousands of Vancouver Canucks hockey fans gathered in their city's Rogers Arena to watch the final game of the Stanley Cup playoffs against the Boston Bruins. After the Canucks lost and the crowds poured out into the streets, some fans began rioting, smashing storefront windows, looting, and overturning cars. The following day, many volunteers gathered in downtown Vancouver to help clean up and repair the damage. They wrote thousands of emotional messages on the plywood covering storefronts, sidewalks, and police vehicles -- messages expressing anger at the rioters, pride in the city, and gratitude toward police and emergency workers. The spontaneous display of sentiment on these sheets of plywood appears to be important enough to the history of the city that the Museum of Vancouver will be saving them once they come down. (Also, be sure to read about The Lst Time Canadians Rioted After the Stanley Cup Finals) [24 photos]

 

A Vancouver Canucks fan videotapes the chaos around an overturned burning pickup truck in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, during rioting after the Canucks lost Game 7, the final and deciding game of the Stanley Cup playoffs to the Boston Bruins on June 15, 2011 (Reuters/Anthony Bolante) 

 

2

Vancouver Canucks fans push over a vehicle as they react to their team's loss to the Boston Bruins in Game 7 of the NHL Stanley Cup final hockey game in Vancouver, British Columbia June 15, 2011. (Reuters/Mike Carlson) #

3

A small tornado forms inside the flames of a burning car during riots following Game 7 of the NHL Stanley Cup hockey playoff in Vancouver, British Columbia, on June 16, 2011. (Reuters/Andy Clark) #

4

Vancouver Canucks fans loot merchandise through the smashed windows of a Sears store during a riot in Vancouver, British Columbia, on June 15, 2011. (Reuters/Mike Carlson) #

5

Riot police walk in the street during the June 15, 2011 riot in Vancouver, Canada. (Rich Lam/Getty Images) #

6

Riot police walk in the street as a couple, Scott Jones and Alex Thomas, share a kiss on June 15, 2011 in Vancouver, Canada. (Rich Lam/Getty Images) #

7

Scott Jones and Alex Thomas lie on a street after Thomas was knocked to the ground by riot policemen, during the riot on June 15, 2011 in Vancouver, Canada. (Rich Lam/Getty Images) #

8

A burnt out car lies upside down in the street following the Vancouver Canucks being defeated by the Boston Bruins in the NHL Stanley Cup Final in Vancouver, British Columbia, on Wednesday, June 15, 2011. (Geoff Howe/The Canadian Press/dapd) #

9

A Vancouver police officer speaks to a Canucks fan being arrested in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, during rioting on June 15, 2011. (Reuters/Anthony Bolante) #

10

Employees of Clover Earthkind Hair Salon work after midnight to clean up some of the damage caused by rioting after the Vancouver Canucks lost the Stanley Cup, in Vancouver, British Columbia, on June 15, 2011. (Reuters/Anthony Bolante) #

11

Passersby look at the damage of a destroyed coffee shop after rioting in Vancouver, British Columbia, on June 15, 2011. (Reuters/Anthony Bolante) #

12

The day after the riot, volunteers began arriving, helping clean up and leaving notes on the plywood covering shattered store windows. Here, volunteers sweep the sidewalk on Georgia St. on June 16, 2011. (© Masoud Harati) #

13

Workers board up a store front on Robson Street that was broken into during riots last night in Vancouver, British Columbia June 16, 2011. (Reuters/Ben Nelms) #

14

A person writes on a sheet of plywood covering a riot-damaged store in Vancouver, B.C. on June 17, 2011. Original here. (Jan Gates/CC BY ND) #

15

Residents read, write, and take photos of messages left on riot-damaged stores in downtown Vancouver on June 18, 2011. Original here. (Guilhem Vellut/CC BY) #

16

Photographer Masoud Harati traveled downtown to capture some of the messages and volunteers in Vancouver. (© Masoud Harati) #

17

A volunteer helping to clean her city, at Robson St. and Granville St., downtown Vancouver, on June 16, 2011. (© Masoud Harati) #

18

Messages left on plywood in downtown Vancouver include "These are not the fans we need or deserve", "Vancity is way too beautiful for this", and "Thank you to the emergency and clean-up crews". (© Masoud Harati) #

19

Scrubbing graffiti off the walls of buildings on Granville street. "Vancouver folks come out and show their true colours the day after the Stanley Cup riot". Original here. (Jan Gates/CC BY ND) #

20

A drawing of the now-famous "kissing couple" photo, left on the plywood covering damaged stores in Vancouver, photographed on June 18, 2011. Original here. (Guilhem Vellut/CC BY) #

21

A Vancouver Police Department car, parked in front of Pacific Centre, covered in with notes of thanks and appreciation, after the June 15th riot. Original here. (Jan Gates/CC BY ND) #

22

A man reads messages on plywood covering the windows of a bank that was broken into during the riot after the NHL Stanley Cup finals, in downtown Vancouver, British Columbia, on June 17, 2011. (Reuters/Jason Lee) #

23

Drawing and sympathetic notes left by Vancouver residents to show support for their city and their hockey team (Vancouver Canucks) and condemning rioters. (© Masoud Harati) #